Gas-engine muffler



W. SITORRIE.

GAS ENGINE MUFFLER. `mmlcmlou man MAY 2r. 1919..

vlllllllll .UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAII sTORRIE, or PROVIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, AssIGNOR Iro Arco MANUFAc- `'.rtriaizaa COMPANY, oF rRovIDENCE, RHODE ISLAND, A CORPORATION or RHODE GAS-ENGIN E MUFFLER.

To all whom t may concem:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM S'roimm, a subject of the King of Great Britain, residing at Providence, in the county of Provldence, State of Rhode Island, have invented certain new and useful Improvements. in Gas-Engine Muiiers, of which the following is a specification.

My invention. is' an improved muiiierand cut-out for internal -combustion engines. The object of my improvement is to provide a muller which may be cast or otherwise constructed in one piece, whereby to render it easy to manufacture at a minimum cost, and whereof to also provide a stronger and more durable structure. Another object of the improvement is `to provide a cut-out on the muffler arranged directly opposite the end of the exhaust-pipe to which the muffler is connected; and further to provide an airinjector or draft-appliance to assist 1n eX- pelling the exhaust-gases from the muffler whereby to prevent back-pressure therein.

The manner and means for carrying out the improvement are fully described in the following specification, illustrated by the accompanying drawings, in whlch like reference characters designate like parts. In the drawings Figure 1 is a vertical sectional View ofmy improved muffler taken on its longitudinal axis Fig. 2 is a vertical cross-section of the same taken in a plane indicated by the line 2--2 in Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a plan view of a modified form of the'muiiier, showing it with a portion of lts casin broken away.

Re erring to the drawings, my improved mufiier comprises a unitary casing A which may be cast in one piece from iron or other suitable metal. The main part of the casing A consists of a vertically arranged box-like expansion-chamber B having an arched top 2 and an enlarged cylindrical bottom-wall 3, see Fig. 2. The front, vertical` wall 4 of "the expansion-chamber B is provided at its lSpeccation of Letters Patent. Patented June 28, 1921, Application led May 27, 1919. Serial No. 300,136. I

charge of the exhaust-gases from the pipe P without passin them through the lower part of the mu er.

The exhaust-port 7 is closed by a cap or cover C carried at the end of an arm or lever L. The lever L takes the form of a lbellcrank having a hub 9 by which it is pivoted to the top of the -casing A. As shown in Figs. 1 and 3, the lever L is pivoted on a bolt 10 passing through its hub 9 and held in vertical ears or lugs 11--11 on the casing A by 4means of a nut 12 screwed onto its end. The

upper arm of the lever L extends vertically from the hub 9 and is provided with a hole 13 at its end, whereby it may be connected to a cord or rod operated from the drivers station to open the cut-out by swinging back the cover C. Extending horizontally from the sides of the cover C are two arms 141-14, to the ends of which are attached coiled, wire springs 15-15. The springs 15-15 are anchored at their opposite ends to lu s or ears 16-16 on the sides of the casing whereby to hold them under tension t0 maintain the cap C normally closed against the exhaust-port 7.

Within the main casing A is a cylindrical wall 20 formed concentric with the bottom wall 3 of the expansion-chamber B, in spaced relation therewith, see Fig. 2, and forming an interior passage which is extended at the rear of' the muffler in a tube 21. As illustrated in Fig. 1, the tube 21 is slightly tapered, with its walls contracted near the outer end and then flared outwardly to provide an enlarged mouth or outlet 22. At its opposite end the tube 21 communi- Cates with `the combustion-chamber B of the casing A by means of inlet ports 23 cut through the interior wall 20. As illustrated in Fig. 2, there are three of these ports con- ,sisting of relatively narrow, longitudinal The structure above described constitutes l in itself a complete mufiler, but as an added feature of improvement I also provide a cold-air injector or draft-device which assists in coolin the .gases and ejecting them from the mu er exhaust. Figs. 1 and 2 of i the drawings show the cold-air vinjector F applied to the muffler, but in Fig. 3 it is omitted since it is not absolutely essential to y the proper working of the device. Fig. 3 shows the end of the tube 21 without the flaring mouth 22, this latter construction not being necessary when the cold air injector 27 is not used. Referring to Fi 1, the front vertical wall 4 of the casing is formed with 'a hub or boss 24 arranged concentric with he cylindrical inner wall 3, and formed th a central bore 25 which is threaded to receive a, plugor nipple 26. Screwed into the nip le 26 is a pipe 27 which extends rearwar ly therefrom axially of the tube 21 to a pomt just within the flared outlet 22 thereof.

The manner of applyin muilier to use is as follows: tendin from the main casin' A is tted to the en of the exhaust-pipe which leads from the engine, and is pinned or otherwise secured thereto to hold it in place. The cutout lever L is then connected by a cord, w1re `or rod to a suitable operating device, such as a, hand-lever or push-rod arranged near the drivers station of the automobile or other vehicle on which the muler is used. With the cut-out port7 closed by 1ts cap C, as shown in Fig. 1, the muffler normally functions as follows: The waste gases formed by combustion within the en ine cylinders are ex elled therefrom throug the pipe P and exliaust into the u per part of the expansion-chamber B. pand into the enlarged space at the bottom of the chamber B, and working their way around the inner wall 20, pass through the my improved he flan e 6 exports 23 into the outlet tube or exhaust-pipe 21. As the gases thus take a circuitous course from the inlet 5 of the muffler down through the expansionchamber B, and thence out through the tube 21 the pressure is reduced by the cooling of the gases, and the noise from the explosions in the combustion-chambers of the engine is deadened or mulled. Hence as the gases exhaust at the rear end of the muiiler tube 2l practically no pressure remains and very little sound is heard.

When the operator wishes to test the enne to. determine if the several cylinders are ring properly he simply pulls the cut-out cord, or operates the lever or rodA attached thereto, and the lever 'L will be rocked to swin the cap C away from the exhaust-port 7., he gases from the pipe P will then be allowed to exhaust directly. through the port 7, without passinlg down throu h the expansion-.chamber and thus "a ree vent is provided in line with the end of the exhaustpigs P.

hen the air-injector or draft-pipe F is employed with the mufiler it assists in the functionin 'of the device in the manner as next explained: A general use for the muilier is on automobiles `where it is applied to the underbody of the car adjacent the rear rom this point they ex draft of air through the injector-pipe F I which passes lon tudinally through the exhaust-tube 21. he relatively cold air entering through the front end of the pipe F and vpassing out at the rear maintains a continuous current which acts to reduce the temperature and velocity of the gases in the exhaust-tube 21, whereby to relieve the pressure; while the stream of air passing out through the flaring mouth 22 sets up a suction-draft which materiall assists the exhaust from the n uiier. n this way the device operates to relieve the pressure in the muffler and thereby assists in' scavengin the burned ses fromv the combustion-c ambers of t e motor.

It is to be observed that m improved design for the muffler casing al ows for its manufacture as a unitary structure, cast in one piece; thus avoiding fitting and bolting .the engine and muiiier whi e preventing the dangernof back-pressure and back-firing of unexploded mixtures.

Various modifications might be made in the structure and arran ement of the parts of the device without eparting from the spirit or scope of the invention, therefore, without limiting myself to the exact embodiment herein shown, what I claim is:

1.. In a muiiler for gas-engines, the combinationof a one-piece casing comprising a vertically arranged expansionchamber adapted for attachment to the exhaust-pipe of the engine, andan interior compartment having cylindrical walls arranged in spaced relation to the walls of the expansion-chamber and extended at a distance beyond the vertical rear wall thereof to rovide a discharge-tube, the walls of sai compartment being formed with inlet-ports communicating with the interior of the expansionchamber. i

2. In a muiiler for gas-engines, the combination of a one-piece caslng comprising a vertically arranged box-like expansionchamber having a flanged inlet on its forward side adapted to receive the end of the exhaust-pipe of the engine and a cut-out port on its rearward side arran ed opposite and directly in line with said inlet, a hin ed cover for closing the cut-out port, an a discharge pipe formbd integral with the expansion-chamber and extendin through the rear wall thereof below the in et to provide an interior compartment with inlet ports in its walls communicating with the interior of the expansion-chamber.

3. In a muiler for gas-engines, the combination of a one-piece casing comprising a vertically-extending expansion-chamber having an arched top and a cylindrical bottom wall and with an inlet-opening adapted to receive the exhaust-pipe of the engine, and an inner compartment having cylindrical walls arranged concentric with the bottom wall of the expansion-chamber in spaced relation thereto and extended rearwardly beycnd the side or the expansion-chamber to 'form a discharge-tube, said inner compartment communicating with the interior of the expansion-chamber by means of restricted inletorte in its walls.

4:. n a muffler for gas-engines, the comibination of a one-piece casing having a vertically arranged box-like expansion-chamber provided with an inlet-port on its front side and a cut-out port arranged directly opposite thereto on its rearward side, a bellcrank lever hinged to the top of the casing and carryinga cap adapted to close the cutout port, resilient means for maintaining said cap normally in closed position, and a cylindrlcal discharge-tube arranged below the inlet extending through the .rear wall of the expansion-chamber and forming an inner compartment communicating with its interior throu h restricted inlet-ports.

5. In a mu er for gas-engines, the com'- bination of a one-piece casing comprising a relatively narrow box-like expansion-chamber having vertical front and rear walls, .an arched top and an enlarged cylindrical bottom, with a flanged inlet opening on the front side of the chamber and a cut-out port in the rearward side directly opposite the inlet, and an integral discharge-tube arranged below the inlet extending rearwardly from the expansion-chamber and intersecting the rear wall thereof to provide au in' terior compartment having inlet ports on its sides.

6. In a mumer for gas-engines, the comspaced like eXpansion-chamber having an inletopening at its upper end and a dischargetube projecting rearwardly from `its lower end and flared outwardly at its outlet, the forward end of the discharge-tube being eX- tended into the interior of the expansionchamber and communicating therewith through restricted inlet-ports, and a cold-air injector-pipe secured in an opening in the front wall of the expansion-chamber and eX- tending axially within the discharge-tube with its rearward end opening into the flare outlet thereof.

In testimony whereof I aiix m si ature.

. WILLIAM S O RIE.

lbination with a casing comprising a box. 

